Vuhledar, the shooting down of Russian targets and strikes deep into Russia. The main points from the conversation between Zelensky and Rutte

The President of Ukraine Volodymyr Zelensky and the NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte held a joint press conference in Kyiv.

They discussed Ukraineʼs Victory Plan, the situation on the battlefield, Ukraineʼs needs in air defense and additional cooperation with its neighbors. Babel briefly recounts the main points of their conversation.

Withdrawal of troops from Vuhledar

President Zelensky for the first time commented on the withdrawal of Ukrainian units from Vuhledar in theDonetsk region.

He says it was the right move to save the lives of the Ukrainian military — Ukraine needs more help from the West to deter Russiaʼs offensive.

"We are persistent enough in the use of long-range weapons, without appropriate weapons we cannot stop the Russian Federation, which uses appropriate weapons against us, destroys everything," he said in response to the question of how Ukraine plans to further deter the Russian offensive in connection with the withdrawal of troops from to Vuhledar.

The President added that the priority for Ukraine remains the preservation of the lives of soldiers.

Membership in NATO

One of Ukraineʼs priorities is to receive an invitation to NATO and become a full member of the Alliance.

"Ukraine is focusing on inviting Ukraine to NATO. This is a very important step, but it is difficult to achieve," said President Zelensky.

However, Zelensky emphasized that he considers the task to be real — Ukraine will continue to work on it. Rutte said that Ukraine is closer to NATO than "ever before".

Shooting down Russian targets by allies

Zelensky hopes that NATO countries will change their position regarding the protection of Ukraineʼs skies. He emphasized that he does not see a fundamental difference in the issue of protecting the airspace of Israel, whose allies help shoot down Iranian missiles and drones, and Ukraine.

"More determination from partners in our region is what is needed to put an end to Russian terror. We will continue to convince our partners," Zelensky emphasized.

NATO Secretary General Rutte, answering the same question, avoided a detailed answer regarding the possibility of shooting down Russian missiles over Ukraine. However, Zelensky supplemented it with a short phrase: "Allies are not ready [to protect the Ukrainian sky]," the correspondent of "European Pravda" reports.

Strikes by Western weapons against Russia

The decision to grant permission to Ukraine to strike the Russian Federation with Western long-range weapons should be made by the countries that transfer these weapons, NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte said.

"It depends not on me, but on individual allies, and their relations with Ukraine," Rutte said.

At the same time, Rutte urged not to forget that Ukraine is fighting a defensive war.

"This means that Ukraine has the right to self-defense. As we know, there is international law, and according to international law, this right does not end at the border. And therefore, supporting Ukraineʼs right to self-defense means that they can also hit legitimate targets on the aggressorʼs territory," the NATO Secretary General emphasized.

Support of Ukraine

Mark Rutte became the Secretary General of NATO on October 1. Arriving in Kyiv was his first official visit in his new position — with this, says Rutte, he confirmed the priority of Ukraine during his tenure.

"It was important for me to come to Ukraine at the beginning of the mandate to show absolutely clearly to you, the people of Ukraine, and to everyone watching that NATO continues to support Ukraine. I consider it my priority and privilege as NATO Secretary General to strengthen this support and ensure that Ukraine prevails [in the war]," Rutte said.

• NATO Secretary General Mark Rutte arrived in Kyiv on October 3. This is his first foreign visit in office.

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